Agguato nella savana

This was perhaps the first film I ever saw at a cinema, and is therefore at the edge of my childhood memory. I don't remember much of it except a person in a Jeep pick-up that was being attacked by a rhino. The rhino, with a somewhat more horizontal horn than normal, was repeatedly ramming the Jeep's doors and almost skewering the person inside. I seem to recall also that the Jeep was painted in a zebra stripe pattern.

There were other exciting scenes of hunts and chases, something like a rodeo with very dangerous animals. No doubt there was also some sort of love sub-plot but this did not imprint on my eight year old memory.

I don't recall much else of the film, but the sight of the rhino's horn piercing the Jeep's doors was pretty frightening at the time.

Dr. Jim Hanlon (Robert Culp) is a zoologist working to study and save animals from poachers. Local guide Alec Burnett is in love with nurse Miss Arleigh. He and Jim clash over methods. He refuses to work for Jim. Then he gets a proposal to capture a pair of white rhinos for a $20k payday and takes a second look at Jim's method. As an outsider, Jim struggles with local customs and knowledge.

Is there such a thing as a spaghetti safari adventure? That's what this feels like. It is a bit of exoticism B-movie. Hanlon is a bit too dumb as a character. Maybe he should play up his book-smarts which could translate into a lack of street-smarts. That would be more endearing and less arrogant. Robert Culp isn't really the nerdy scientist type anyways. He is better by comparison to the incredibly annoying Alec. It is all encapsulated in the one scene. Arleigh is trying to be serious while he's laughing it off as they roll around on the ground. He refuses to listen to her or care about her thoughts while thinking it's some sort of foreplay. She doesn't come off that well either. None of them are coming off well. The movie tries to sell this as slapstick and it's all very annoying. During this era, this could be sold as animal-friendly. This does have the location and wild animals. That's something interesting.

There are parts of this movie that are not just silly; they are painfully silly. The way the scene where rhino's chases the two male stars around were almost laughable. In the scene, all you can see of the rhino's is their heads; and while watching these scenes I could in my minds eye back away from the shot; and see the rhino head on a stick connected to a wheeled cart being pushed around by members of the crew. And the rhino's seem to be not putting much effort into their chase. There also were a couple poorly staged scene's involving snakes. And one last criticism; the editing is choppy, some of the cuts leave you scratching your head thinking "what just happened" All that being said I enjoyed this film. It is after all based on fact. I liked the characters, and the wild life scenes were amazing. I was impressed with the way these actors interacted with the anesthetized animals. In most movies like this the big stars stand back while the "natives" actually get close to, or touch the animals. Both Gaurdino and Culp were, in a couple scenes standing right with not yet fully doped animals; these scenes were unlike anything I can remember. These scenes really drew me into this film. It's not ofter you see the pampered stars who act bravely in scenes with special effects; doing scenes with real animals. The crowning glory was Shirley Eaton (the Golden Girl); she wasn't completely convincing in the role, but who cares it's Shirley Eaton. This film surprised me. It was just the next film on TCM and came on in the background while I was doing something else. I almost changed channels, and I'm glad I didn't. All and all this is and interesting film, with characters you will like, and care about what happens to them. Robert Culp was good, but for my money Guardino stole this flick. You'll only be sorry if you miss this film.

Not the normal rhino movie but the one with the exclamation point! Zoologist Robert Culp spends the entire movie locking horns with menacing white hunter Harry Guardino as they collaborate on pioneering a method of safely catching wild white rhinos, which is a bit of a buzzkill as neither of them seem very likeable and their dialogue is leaden. Despite this crippling focus, the film does provide some great rhino footage when they finally get around to it, and all the wildlife shots on safari in South Africa are worth downing a Tusker lager or two for. Shirley Eaton provides the love interest in this manly duel as a nurse, and scores the films most amusingly campy moment when she is charged by an unamused rhino.

In picturesque Africa, kindly zoologist Robert Culp (as Jim Hanlon) saves a lion who has lost his appetite by tranquilizing the animal and performing some dental work. He is on the continent to help save African animals from extinction. The rhino, especially white rhino, is especially vulnerable. Attractive in slacks and slicked hair, Mr. Culp clashes with scruffy, trigger-happy Harry Guardino (as Alec Burnett). Unaware Mr. Guardino is there to poach Rhinos for profit, Culp hires him as a guide. Beautiful blonde Shirley Eaton plays Guardino's girlfriend. Crocodiles like her pretty feet. The location footage contributed by Sven Persson and Lamar Boren looks all right - but it's mismatched, appears roughly edited, and ends up unappealing.

*** Rhino! (5/20/64) Ivan Tors ~ Robert Culp, Harry Guardino, Shirley Eaton, Harry Mekela